Springfield daily republic. [volume] (Springfield, O. [Ohio]) 1887-1888, 1887-09-10
CHAPTER N.-CoNTINUEp.

when 4 mad been for three hours SO al
the helm began 10 notice a decided chang,
in the temperature, which was getting
warmer At first took no notice OF it, but
when at the expiration OF another half hour
found that il was getting hotter anu hotter
called to Sir Henry and asked him If he no
tcei it or if 1t was only Iny imagination
N oticed it!- he answered. Il should think So
/ am in a sort OF Turkish bath" Just abou,
then tine others woke up gasping and wert
obliged to begin 20 discard tGeir clothes.
Here Umsluprgaas had the advantage, for
he did not Wear any to speak Of except a
mocha.
Hotter it grew. and hotter yet, till at las,
We could scarcely breathe, and the perspira.
ton poured out of us. Half an hour more,
and though We Were all now stark naked we
could hardly bear IL The place was like All
antechamber OF the Internal regions proper.
dipped my hand into the water. and drew il
out almost with cry; 1t was nearly boiling.
We consulted 3. little Thermometer we had
the mercury st,ooi at lot deSs From the sur
face Of the water rose a dense cloud of steam.
Alphonse groan-d out that we were already
in purgatory. which indeed We We're, though
not in the sense that he meant il Sir Henry
seat of some underground volcanic fire, and
am inclined TO think, especially IN the eight OF
what subsequently, occurred, that he was
right. Our sufferinGs for some time after
this really pass my powers of description.
We no longer perspred, for all the perspira-
tod had been sweated out of us: We simply
Law in the bottom of the boat, which We were
now physically incapable of directing, feeling
~, "A i
much the same sensations that the poor fish do
when they are dying on land, namely. that of
slow suffocation. Our skins began to crack.
and the blood 10 throh in our heads like the
beating of "A steam engine.
This had been going on for some time,
when suddenly the river turned little, and
heard Sir Henry call out from the bows in
q hoarse, startled voice, and looking up sawa
mos. wonderful and awful thing. About
half mile ahead of us, and u little to the left
of the center of the stream-which We could
now see was about ninety feet broad-a huge
pillar like jet of almost white flame rose from
the surface Of the water and sprang fifty feet
into the air, when it struck the roof and
spread out some forty feet in diameter, fall
ing back in curved sheets Of fire shaped like
the petals Of a full blown rose, Indeed. this
awful gas jet resembled nothing So much rs n
great flaming flower rising out of the black
water. Below was the straight stalk. a foot
or more thick and above the dreadful bloom.
And as for the fearfulnesS of IT, AMI its fierce
and awesone beauty. who can describe it!
Certainly cannot Although we were now
some so yards away, it, notwithstanding the
steam, lit up the whole cavern as clear as day,
and We could see that the roof was here about
forty feet above and washed perfectly smooth
with water. The rock was black, and here
and there could make out long, shining lines
of ore running through it like great veins,
but of what metal they We're know not.
On We rushed toward this pillar Of fire,
which CLEANED iiercer than any furnace ever
Lit by man.